Frequently Asked Questions

Frequently Asked Questions

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Environment of Care & Support

What is the living environment like?

Parc Provence is an innovative, victorian-style community made up of five unique and interconnected quaint households. Each household is designed to provide an intimate living environment. Walk in the front door of a household, and you’ll find it to be like home. Each household has its own exquisite dining room, living room, kitchen and sunroom. Walk outside to your back porch or backyard and beautiful garden. Here, residents have a comfortable place to be in contact with nature – in a safe environment. Research shows that this type of household setting offers many advantages. For example, your loved one may enjoy making coffee or preparing a favorite recipe with family members in the comfortable and relaxed kitchen, just as they would in their own home.

Will my loved one be living in an environment designed to maximize his or her cognitive and physical abilities?

Following a comprehensive assessment of the resident’s physical, cognitive and emotional strengths and abilities, residents are grouped in households, primarily based on those strengths and abilities, instead of by physical limitations or needs. Research shows that this system of grouping Residents fosters better care and more peer-to-peer interactions at all stages.

Will my loved one have an individualized program based on the things he or she enjoys doing?

Each resident has a daily schedule, created for them, based on their preferred times and routines and according to their own individual needs and special interests. Group activities are based on common interests of current residents. Each resident is monitored to determine their participation in individual and group activities and their daily schedule is reviewed and modified on a regular basis. A music therapist, art therapist, horticulturist and massage therapist are on-site to maximize each resident’s potential and abilities.

Where do these activities occur?

Resident activities occur in each household as well as in a central Promenade. This features many interesting and inviting settings, including Ice Cream Cafe & Bistro, Library, Greenhouse, on-site Chapel, beauty salon/barber shop, private lake for fishing and nature experiences and adjacent park for tennis. Many other outings also occur within the local community.

What is the frequency of these activities?

Activities are scheduled 12 hours per day, every day, including weekends and holidays. Moreover, individualized activity programs are designed for each resident based on his or her own interests and preferences. In addition to these individual activities, there are many group activities to encourage socialization and interaction amongst the residents and their families.

What is the total staffing available on-site, and how are they trained?

Parc Provence has a total of 200 employees on-site to serve 120 residents. We have the highest staff-to-resident ratio in the industry for both daytime and evening shifts, including weekend and holiday coverage. All employees participate in an initial 32-hour training/orientation program, which includes 8 hours of classroom instruction specific to memory care, plus a minimum of 40 hours of additional training annually.

What type of state license/staff credentials does the community have to support the physical and mental well being of each Resident?

Parc Provence is a fully-licensed Skilled Nursing Facility. We can accommodate residents at all functional levels.
> We provide 24-hour nursing care, 7 days per week, supervised by a full-time Registered Nurse.
> We have a special license from the State of Missouri as part of the Alzheimer's Demonstration Project, which allows us to provide specialized dementia care.
> Our staff is made up of geriatric physicians, therapists, social workers, nurses, and other disciplines specializing in the care of residents with memory-related illnesses.

What types of therapy services are offered?

Our Speech, Physical, and Occupational Therapists have over 500 hours of training in providing skilled services to residents with symptoms of dementia. They use traditional and interest-based techniques to enhance resident abilities in the Parc Provence Wellness Center's “Function Junction” environment. “Procedural Memory” assists residents as their therapy is carried out in familiar surroundings such as a grocery store, a workshop, a casino or an office. Therapy is also held in the homelike environment of the households, outdoor living areas or accomplished during scheduled activities. An athletic trainer is available to provide individual and small group exercise regimens.

Is there an in-house physician?

Yes, Dr. David Carr is our Medical Director. Dr. Carr is a Professor of Medicine and Director of Clinical Services at Washington University's Division of Geriatrics and Gerontology, and he is a nationally recognized expert in the field of memory care.